Colorado sets first-in-the-nation price ceiling on a prescription drug

Colorado became the first state in the country Friday to set a maximum price that insurers and patients can pay for a prescription medication — a move that’s likely to face lawsuits.

The state’s Prescription Drug Affordability Board voted to set a maximum price of $600 for 50 milligrams of the arthritis drug Enbrel. Adults typically take that dose weekly, for an annual maximum price of about $31,200. Kids with juvenile arthritis take about half that amount, putting their maximum at roughly $15,600.

As of 2023, insurance companies in Colorado paid an average of about $53,000 a year for each customer using Enbrel. Patients paid about $4,600 annually out of pocket, on average, for the medication.

The drug treats six autoimmune conditions, which involve the immune system attacking joints, s